Daily Nonpareil, Council Bluffs, IA
11-01-06
Gardener program benefits county, participants
TOM MCMAHON, Staff Writer
Green thumbs get even greener with the help of one West Pottawattamie County
Extension program.
Director Brad Richardson said the county's Master Gardener program benefits
both the county and the gardener. He said the program's approximately 150
graduates gain knew knowledge and also help other county residents with their
gardening questions. The gardeners also participate in community projects, using
their expertise to help green-up their towns.
"They get 40 hours of initial training through Iowa State University," Richardson
said.
Advertisement
Continuing education credits are required to keep one's master status.
Richardson said the volunteers help homeowners learn about trees, bushes
grasses and plants.
From questions about the best plants for Iowa's climate to inspecting decaying
leaves to determine the cause, the gardeners have a wealth of information, he
said. Master Gardeners answer telephone requests for gardening information,
staff plant clinics or displays, speak to local groups, teach youth, provide
horticultural therapy activities for the elderly and supervise or judge county
horticultural activities, Richardson said.
In 2005, he said Master Gardeners provided over 800 hours of service to West
Pottawattamie County communities. The group also provides scholarships to
groups doing horticultural projects with children.
Richardson said the scholarships are funded with proceeds from the gardeners'
spring plant sale.
"Some of them come into the program with an incredible amount of information,"
Richardson said. "For many it is their hobby."
Richardson added he was teaching part of one class when one of the students
started rattling off plant names in Latin.
"They can be intimidating at times they know so much," he said.
But having gardening knowledge is not a prerequisite to becoming a master,
Richardson said.
"You need to have a love for it, an interest and enthusiasm, and be willing to
share information with others," he said.
Richardson tries to offer one class each year and currently has one scheduled to
begin in January. The class meets two nights each week for two months and
costs the participant $125, which only pays part of the course's expenses, he
said.
Some of the topics covered include lawn care, flower and vegetable gardening,
ornamental trees and shrubs, fruit crops, insect, weed and disease control, plant
nutrition and pesticide safety.
While the gardeners primarily assist homeowners with their horticultural issues,
the extension also provides a wide range of services to area farmers.
Richardson said extension staff assist farmers with crop and livestock questions,
and also assists 4-Hers with inquiries.
"The agricultural side of extension is very big," he said.
One of the most important tasks the office undertakes is keeping area farmers
and the entire state aware of any insects or disease that have invades local
crops. Richardson said his office continues to monitor soybean rust activity and
whether the emerald ash bore, an ash tree killer, will make its way into Iowa.
"People will bring us in insects they have found in their fields and we can help
them find out what it is and if it poses any threat," he said.
For more information on extension programs or to register for the Master
Gardener program, phone 366-7070 or richards@iastate.edu, or go online to
extension.iastate.edu/westpottawattamie.